One Last Dance
by Kayosei
Summary: Yuna and Tidus have been reunited, but when a Fayth tells them that his time on Earth is limited, it changes everything... Yuna's POV. NB,In this fanfiction, after the end of X2, the fayth statues were replaced like nothing had happened.
1. Reunion

Seeing you again was a blessing to me. I hugged you as hard as I could, letting go of all of my troubles that had ever come over me. They didn't matter now. Inside, I thanked the Fayth. But even though we were together again, questions never seemed to stop running through my head- What if you weren't real? What if you left me as you did before? That, I thought, would be worse than the first time you left. People watched us and jeered; but their words were almost inaudible compared to the crashing of the waves below us and the Celsius roaring overhead. I opened my mouth to talk but no words came out; only more joy and happiness tumbled from my lips.

We ran back to the beach you had seen only once before- Besaid beach. The sun seemed to beam down on us, the water splashing you as I ran on ahead. You hadn't changed at all; the blue eyes I had gazed upon so long ago seemed to look at me once more.

"You've changed." Your voice hadn't changed either.

I knew I had changed. I never thought you would come back, but when I saw that sphere of 'you', I knew I had to try. I had to leave Besaid and travel Spira, anything to find you and see your face again. Spira had been so flooded with memories, sometimes I found it hard to carry on; The Spring in Macalania woods was fading away, our memories with it. Zanarkand Ruins was being destroyed by tourists, and so was my memory of how we spent our last moments together before. The Calm Lands were being turned into a theme park, and the respect we had shared for fallen Summoners was changing too.

It almost seemed that time was flying by now that you were here with me- yet it felt that now I had all the time in my life to tell you all the things I wanted to say, to visit all the places that we never visited.

How wrong I was.

When we had explained to all the visitors- Wakka, Lulu and nearly all of Besaid Village, how you had just come back after you had left me so suddenly, and we had told them it was not your fault, words from deep down in my heart echoed inside me, words I had said many times before but never with as much meaning as this moment.

"Let's go home."

You smiled at me, a warm smile that I had forgotten for so long. Watching the Celsius land on Besaid Cliffs, I started to walk across the beach.

"Tell me everything." You whispered softly in my ear.

My heart poured everything to you. Not even the darkest corners of my past were left behind on that day, when we sat on the beach. We sat for hours, whilst I told you about everything we had done. Meeting Paine, Gippal, Nooj and Baralai, Lenne and Shuyin, and even what happened on the Farplane. I remembered how I saw you for a moment, and how you held me in the comforting embrace that you had held me with over two years ago.

We boarded the Celsius together, and I showed you Rikku, Paine, Brother, Barkeep and Buddy. You didn't even recognize them anymore. That made me smile inside, you must have been confused.

I hoped and prayed that you would come home for so long, and now you were with me again. It seemed so magical for us to be together once more; I just prayed this moment would last forever with you beside me. Then, when we had decided to sit upon the deck and gaze at the stars; the same stars upon which I was saved, and you vanished, the Fayth appeared once more. It was a meeting I would have enjoyed and embraced when I was alone, but now you were with me, I dreaded it. The moon hung low upon the sky as the pyreflies from the fayth danced around us. After they had been sent so long ago, no hymns rung out from the temples anymore. Instead, a dark silence hung low around them, shrouding yet more secrets that had been hidden for so many years.

The fayth seemed to grow ever more impatient, so I decided to let them speak. News from the Fayth directly to you was never good news, yet they may be able to have answers. Were you real? Why did you disappear anyway?

"As you know, Tidus has returned." I smiled at tidus, who was sitting next to me. Yes, he had miraculously returned to me and I would have given anything to bring him back. The Fayth continued.

"However, when Tidus was returned to you, as he was a dream, there were conditions that had to be made."

My stomach began to churn. Tidus looked worried. I tried to calm myself down- nobody would take Tidus away, would they? Not after all that's happened between us? After all I have done for the Fayth?

Tidus obviously wanted answers too. "What do you mean, conditions?"

The fayth looked towards the floor of the Celsius. "When Tidus was brought back to you, it was obvious to us that we could not sustain such a life form forever. We were able to summon all our remaining strength to bring him back to you for a month. When the next moon arises, our power will wane once more, and he will be no longer."

The Fayth vanished.


	2. Disbelief

I couldn't say anything. I stood up and tried to grab the fayth, but all I was left with was pyreflies circling me. I stood and heard the low hum of the Celsius, and the wind blowing past me. Then it hit me, a feeling of guilt, the worst feeling I had ever felt before.

It was my fault.

I turned around to Tidus sitting still in the same place he had been. It was my fault he had vanished, if I had died at Zanarkand with Yunalesca, I would have kept you alive. You could have had a life, seen all the things you wanted to see, and you could have found a way to back home...but no. I was selfish. I wanted to stay alive, and now...this.

"I'm scared." Tidus suddenly spoke.

A deep silence, an echoic chasm of sorrow and woe, split us apart. I felt so far from Tidus, but yet he was merely a meter away.

"I...don't know what to say..." I truly didn't. I know I should have comforted him, but with what? There are no words that can comfort the hole inside your heart when you know you will die. Nothing. I know. I've been there before.

Before I knew it, a tear had rolled down my cheek and had split in the wind. It just wasn't fair. Why to us? After I put the fayth to rest? Why did they do this to us? I know it wasn't their fault, but couldn't help feel anger and sorrow at the same time. More tears fell, falling like rain onto the part of the Celsius below my feet. I turned around and so did Tidus. You were crying too.

"Well...we best tell the others." I started to turn towards the Celsius door. Tidus put his hand on my shoulder.

"Please...make sure we get to see everything...all the stuff you told me...I want to see it...before..." I stopped him.

"Don't go there. I will."

We both walked through the Celsius door and down the lift to the deck.

"Surprise! Welcome home!" Rikku jumped up from behind the door. Paine was...smiling? And brother was over the moon.

That night, I just couldn't bring myself to tell them. Neither could Tidus. After all they had done for us, after all they had been through, I know they should have been told. But I couldn't, could I?

But, I didn't know whether to tell them at all...


	3. Day One

I traipsed down the stairs the next morning in my pyjamas onto the deck. Rikku, Paine, Buddy and Tidus were already there. I joined in with their cleanup process, cleaning up all the party poppers and discarded party hats. It almost felt like picking up the pieces of my life after Tidus had gone, and how I would have to again...

"Yehaww!" Brother jumped down onto the deck, spilling over our bag back onto the floor and bringing us back to square one.

"You stupid idiot!" Rikku ran up to her brother and playfully kicked him. Tidus laughed. Old memories just came flooding back of when we all laughed and smiled on my pilgrimage. But those times were over now. Time to move on.

"Here." Shinra pulled up a map on his computer. "So, where are we headed today?"

We all just sat in silence for a few minutes. Then, Rikku came up with an idea:

"How about Kilika? We can visit the woods and stuff!"

No one had a better idea, so we left the ship in autopilot whilst we all got ready. As the ship descended, I thought on what I could do when Tidus would leave, this time permanent. I had no clue. I didn't know what I would do without him sitting next to me, although I had been without him for so long. It seemed we had been together forever and I never wanted to let him go.

But I know fate had been cruel to me. My dice had been rolled.

We climbed out onto the decks. Tidus looked around in sheer amazement.

"Is this...Kilika? The one that Sin destroyed?"

"Yes." I stepped forward to see the full view and the woods beyond. "It looks so different now, I can hardly remember it when it was destroyed."

We all proceeded on, taking a boat through the heart of the town. The water around me just floated by. Moments drifted into new moments as the scenery I had seen so many times before passed, yet it looked so much more...beautiful now. Ugly marks on the buildings had become messages of sorrow, anguish and love. Blown over trees somehow still looked alive. Rikku and Paine sat in the boat behind us, so that we could have our 'moments' in peace.

When we arrived at the wood, Tidus stopped.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"The woods haven't changed at all, have they?" He smiled and ran his hand up a tree. "All the trees...they look just the same."

"Nope!" I smiled "They get more beautiful with you here!"

Tidus blushed, Rikku giggled and Paine just rolled her eyes. I giggled too. It was true. Life seemed to have gotten more beautiful since Tidus had come back.

We walked through the woods, talking to passers-by as they stopped to collect fruits, or battle some fiends. It seems that after Vegnagun was defeated, more and more people have taken to fighting fiends. Soon there will be no more fiends left to fight.

We walked up the steps to Kilika Temple.

As we arrived, a few villagers must have known we were coming. They had formed a large archway for us to walk under, and they had a banner saying "Welcome home Tidus!" pinned up in the holes where the Sinspawn once stood.

"Wow...looks like we made quite a name for ourselves!" Tidus laughed walked down.

I followed. Rikku and Paine stayed below to chat to Dona and some other villagers we had seen when fighting Ifrit.

So it was left to Tidus and I to visit the temple. The echoic silence seeped into the corners of the room, shrouding them with mystery and secrets. But for once, I wasn't scared of the temples of what they hid. The fires almost seemed to flare up to us in recognition as we walked through.

"Are the trials not here anymore?" Tidus was confused.

"There was no need for them, was they? Summoners were put out of action when Sin was truly defeated, so the trials were no longer needed as they was nobody to use them and no prize to obtain."

Tidus nodded, so I guess he understood.

We proceeded further into the temple. The chamber of the Fayth opened. I started to walk in but again, Tidus stopped. I knew why.

"You know, you can come in because now that the fayth---"

"No, it's not that." I was obviously wrong. "It's just...I know how you felt now. Saying goodbye to the places you loved so much. I mean...I'm doing the same now aren't I?"

I turned around and just stood and looked at the ground below us. It was true, he was saying goodbye to all the places he had loved and learnt about so quickly. The flickering fire cast shadows upon his face, and probably some upon mine.

"Don't say that, Tidus. Maybe, the Fayth will figure out---"

I was interrupted again. "You know it's true. The Fayth have tried all they could, but this is all they could do for me. I'm going to die and there's nothing we can do to stop it."

A solitary tear rolled down my cheek. I didn't want to think about that. We could leave it at the back of our minds until it seemed we had all the time in the world.

I turned back to the chamber door. "Come on, let's go in."

We proceeded into the Chamber and the stone statue was no longer on the floor. I gasped and Tidus looked pretty shocked.

"Where is the Fayth statue?" He asked.

"I...I don't know..."

We both hurried back outside. When outside, Rikku and Paine joined us. I went over to Dona to ask her.

"Where has the Fayth statue gone?" I asked, in total disbelief.

"It was crushed." Dona looked me in the eye. "The statues had no purpose, so they were removed."

"What problems did they cause? Why couldn't they just be left there as a tribute to the Fayth?" Tidus was angry, it was clear from his tone of voice. But Dona merely walked away.

My mind trailed off at that point.

Why did Tidus have to leave?

Why couldn't I leave instead and give him a chance and life...


	4. Day Two

That night I just couldn't stop thinking. I kept rolling over in the night, the rain pouring down in a strange yet soothing drone...all these things I had taken for granted.

The breath of the wind.

The rolls of the sea.

The smile on your face.

I wished you would be here forever with me that night, with all my heart...but nothing came. No Fayth. No light. Nothing. I rolled over and went to sleep.

The next morning, I awoke to a strange feeling...I just couldn't place it. I gave up and moved on.

We all walked over to Shinra's map, wondering where to go and who would come up with it. Today, it seemed, no one had any idea. There we so many places we wanted to go...we didn't know where to go first.

Then, a hologram appeared at the receiving machine (Shinra's inventions) and we all crowded around to watch.

"Welcome one and all! The new Blitzball tournament is opening today! Come watch, or if you want, join a team!"

The hologram disappeared into a few sparks. Tidus smiled.

"Luca it is then!" He exclaimed, truly excited.

None of us play Blitzball. I don't really like it, to be honest. But I didn't have the heart to turn him down. Nobody did. We all just watched silently, false smiles and happiness plastered onto our faces like glue. We waited by the door again, and I thought of how alike this was to my pilgrimage. False smiles, happiness and the knowledge that soon I would be alone.

The ship landed in Luca with a familiar thud. We got out, and more crowds to see us, some happy, some crying because their loved ones had vanished just like Tidus. It had seemed that the city of dreams had spread out, touching Spira all the time. So many had been lost, just as when we were fighting Sin.

We walked down the stairs to the stadium, and so many children were out playing together. The New Yevon priests were out too with their children, and so were the Youth League. It was really satisfying to think that now they were all together again, enjoying life in itself instead of it's meaning. We walked up to the spherical dome that was the Blitzball ring.

Inside, there was a list of teams accepting places. There were the usual such as the Besaid Aurochs, but as a tribute to the fallen dreams, there were the Zanarkand Abes. We read that one up and there were a couple of spaces free. Tidus signed up straight away.

Sitting in the stands, watching him play...was such a beautiful feeling. Yet there was always a nagging feeling that this was the _last time. _I would _never see him do this again._ It hurt so much. But I kept it quiet. As they say, I must make the most of the time I've got with him, instead of wallowing in regret after.

I stood up impulsively to cheer him on. I was nervous about making a scene in front of others, but yet I thought it was _now or never._ So I started to chant, "Come on Tidus!" At the top of my voice, despite all the funny looks Rikku and Paine were giving me.

They won. The Zanarkand Abes, I mean. We sat in the square, having a picnic. Rikku and Paine had opted out, going for something hot from the Cafe. We sat and decided to talk.

"Well done. It looks life you won." I said.

"Yeah. My Final Game was great." He said gloomily.

"Don't say that...we've had this conversation before."

"I know, but you know it's---" I'd had enough at this point.

"Yes, I do. I know you're going to die and I deeply regret that. But please, for me, be optimistic? If we put it behind us, then we'll be fine, ok?"

He was angry too. "You don't know how I fe---"

"Yes I do! How do you think I felt when I loved you, but thought I was going to die? How do you think it felt, recording those farewell messages?"

I walked away, and then started to run. I ran to the pier, where I had first whistled. I looked out.

Why was he being like this?


	5. Day Three

We spent the night in a hotel on the outskirts of Luca. I didn't see anything of Tidus during the trip or whilst I was there, but at that moment, I didn't care. I lay awake all night, gazing out of the window to see the port, empty and desolate.

Why was he being like this? I imagined that he would be kind and helpful, not pessimistic like he is now. Maybe two years of being apart was too much, maybe I changed him in my head as time passed. I didn't know anything anymore; reality and imagination just swirled into one mess into my head.

The next day, I awoke without saying a word; nobody came either to wake me. That was a relief. I glanced across to find that Rikku and Paine were still asleep, so I quietly dressed and left. I pushed the door open for the boy's dormitory, everyone was still asleep and there was an empty bed by the window. Then it struck me like a steak through the heart- Tidus had gone. But where? But why? Ws he really so different that he would run away from me like this?

I ran outside, freezing in the morning mist that surrounded the docks. I glanced around, but no sign of him. I tried to think about what he said the other day; I thought it might help me locate him.

"Yeah. My Final Game was great."

Maybe...he had wanted another game? I dashed over to the Blitzball stadium, my feet sore from all the running. Luca was so full of twists and turns...I continued to run. I missed a ditch in the road and fell over in a back alley. It was only a small graze, but tears flooded down my cheeks like rain. Why had I run off like that? Why? Why? Why?

"Let me help you up." A familiar voice rung out to me. Tidus? I looked up, my vision blurred by my crying. I rubbed at my eyes and saw that blonde hair, those blue eyes...

"Tidus!" I grabbed his hand as it erupted into pyreflies. I watched them dance around me, mockingly, as the whole illusion vanished.

"No...I can't give up! You're not an illusion!" I, with my newfound courage, ran over to the stadium, into the locker room...

Nobody there. Not one soul, no remnants of his presence.

I continued into the dark corridor that led from the locker room to the inside of the stadium itself, for the Blitzball players to walk through. I'd never been up here before, it was really dark and my heart felt heavy...

I heard splashing from the stadium. I pulled out my gun and walked with it by my side, for comfort. The splashing got louder and louder as I got closer and closer to the Blitzball ring...

Then I saw him, practicing, just like I'd hoped.

"Tidus!"

I jumped into the ring, where he was swimming. I swam over to him and tapped him. He turned around to face me, and he looked...sad. There was such a look of inconsolable sorrow on his face, but as he saw my face, he put his arms on my shoulders and smiled. For that instant, I knew he was sorry, and all my worries left me.

Then, for some reason, black engulfed me.

I opened my eyes to find myself on the Celsius, and Rikku was standing over me.

"Whoa!" I back away and straightened myself up. I looked around. "Why am I here?"

"You blacked out, remember? You scared us so much! We woke up in the hotel to find you and Tidus gone. We found you and Tidus in the Blitzball stadium...Tidus was alright but you had obviously been under there too long!"

I blushed, remembering running away from the hotel and finding Tidus, and that look upon his face..."I'm sorry to have worried you! But, erm...where's Tidus now?"

"He's on the top deck, waiting for you."

I started to run out of the cabin, but Rikku grabbed my wrist. I stopped and turned around to face her.

"I know something's not right, okay?" She smiled a little. "It's okay if you don't want to tell us just yet, but please tell us, okay?"

I ducked my head and ran for the top deck, upset that Rikku knew we were covering up something.

Tidus was standing there, waiting, like Rikku said. The evening light blinded me- had I been unconscious for that long? I walked over to Tidus and spoke softly, so not to hurt his feelings.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have run off like that. I know it hurts so much, please forgive me."

Tidus turned and laughed, then hugged me. I returned his embrace, and I felt him whisper in my ear. "Of course I forgive you! Just, don't go scaring us like that okay? We still have lots of time left. Let's make the most of it."

I felt on top of the world as we walked back into the cabin, holding hands.


	6. Day Four

That night was truly magical. Nothing amazing happened; just the fact that Tidus and me were together again seemed to make the night perfect in every way. It didn't matter that it rained and we couldn't enjoy the glorious sunset, it didn't matter that Tidus still didn't really understand some things, all that mattered was that he was here, sitting next to me.

The next morning, we all sat outside, the wind ruffling Tidus's hair playfully, which made Rikku and I laugh as he tried desperately to flatten it.

"Why don't we stay here today?" Rikku asked, "A day of rest after all the drama!"

Tidus laughed at that, "Okay then."

So we stayed on board the ship. Rikku and I started a fashion show in all our dresspheres, with Buddy, Brother, Tidus and Paine watching. We convinced Paine to join in a little, which was highly amusing when Paine began to shoot at Rikku whilst in her gunner dressphere!

We decided to have a picnic on top of the Celsius, since the day was breezy but not windy enough to blow everything away. The food was beautiful, maybe it was because Tidus was there, eating it with me, that I had become overly optimistic, yet I still thought that maybe...the fayth might be able to help us...

"Yunie? A word?" Rikku gave me a slight push and I went flying. Everyone laughed.

We had been playing word association and I'd drifted off into space, I think...

Since we were approaching the Thunder Plains, we packed away our picnic and headed inside. Rikku, although she says she's over her fear for good, still packed exceptionally fast and got inside first! We all watched the bolts of lightening dance in front of our eyes; Tidus was teasing Rikku about being scared so I had to fill him in.

As the thunder passed, we all separated to do different things, as if the magic had gone, those moments had passed. Tidus went to look at all the spheres we had collected, but before he had chance to see any of them I quickly snapped up the Shuyin one and walked to the cabin, putting it under my pillow. I couldn't let him know that he was made up off someone else; he knew he was made up...but he didn't know he was a copy!

I shook that thought from my head. He isn't a copy, is he? He has thoughts and feeling like all of us, doesn't he? He loves me...doesn't he? He never said it to me, not once, but he does love me...right?

Then this feeling, this overwhelming feeling of doubt crept into me. Was I just making up this love? When he left me, could he have not had the courage to say he couldn't return my feelings?

I didn't know any more...


	7. Day Five

**((Due to a shorter Day Four, I've added this early as a special treat!))**

Again, we all had no idea of where to go. Nothing in our heads at all, our minds blank. I still couldn't find the words to speak, doubt filled in my head. He had never said, "I love you" to me, so maybe I was proclaiming my love in vain? Maybe I had waited for nothing? Had I imagined everything, making it sweeter in my own head so the pain in my heart would be more bearable?

"Hey look! It's Tobli!" Rikku pointed to one of the commspheres.

Sure enough, Tobli's face appeared on the screen, saying there was a concert today, and wondered if we'd go to boost his crowds.

"Okay, see you there Tobli!" I jumped up happily, trying to plaster a smile on my face. Tidus looked at me as he usually would; yet I felt no happier. I just needed to_know _he loved me, stop this horrid feeling that all I did to get him back was in vain...

I kept my smile up though, as if I was sad at the concert, everyone would know. So at least acting happy could leave me undisturbed...

"Gaaah!" The Celsius jolted and all of us flew forward. We looked up.

"Seems like Brother has a little problem with the driving." Paine smirked to herself, sighing and walking away.

"Let me drive!" I stood up from where I had fallen over, walking towards the large machine.

"Shouldn't we just put it into Auto-Pilot?" Rikku suggested.

"I've never tried it before...I just wanted to try." I looked up at her sadly, trying to convince her.

"Alright then, but any problems and we'll put into auto-pilot and you can look like you're driving!" Buddy called out.

I sat in the centre, not knowing what to do at all. Rikku was stood next to me, telling me what to do.

"So you press this button here to go forwards, this one to stop..." She dragged on, and I lost myself in my worry.

Tidus was on the deck, he said. Who knew where he was? He could be planning to leave me, to spend his last days alone. But he said that he wanted to make the most of them, right? Yet he may just want to be a friend, that's why he might want to avoid anything above that...my head was swimming with doubts and less reassuring thoughts.

"You ready?" Rikku's louder voice brought me back out of myself. "Go!" She called, and I was left on my own.

I decided to go for broke and press lots of buttons at once because I wasn't listening, and we jolted this way and that. Buddy couldn't sit up long enough to press Autopilot; until Tidus yelled, "Stop!" did I stop.

I turned around and Buddy pressed the button, Rikku was laughing. I got out and walked over to Tidus. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay...I'm just feeling a little sick, that's all."

"We're here!" Rikku shouted to all of us, cutting my reply short.

We descended onto the marshy ground of the Moonflow, we all had to jump out a little since out ship was too big to land anywhere! We walked over to the concert, where lots of tourists and visitors alike had gathered. A lot of people crowded around me, but I had expected it. Even after this long, people were still bowing and crowding around me. I stopped and chatted a while, then sat in-between Tidus and Rikku to listen to the music.

I wasn't really listening; I'd heard it all before, I'd only came as a favour to Tobli. I watched the lake, and remembered when we walked past here as a summoner...I wasn't able to see the lake at night; we had had to move on. And, when Tidus vanished, I vowed to myself that I would never see it until he came back. I thought I could never truly appreciate something so beautiful with such an empty feeling inside me, but I could with the love of my life next to me.

The concert lasted until the sunset, by this time though, all of us had gotten impatient and started talking quietly, barely audible above the music. We clapped after the final note had played, then I said goodbye to all the crowds. Then, we said thank you to Tobli for inviting us, and as the band left, we were alone.

"Remember when I was here as a summoner, and we couldn't see the lake at night?" I asked Tidus.

"Yeah," He replied, "I remember." I think he understood what I was going to say.

"Let's see it together."

We all sat, silent, as we watched the beauty of the lake. How long I had waited for this moment, how hard I wished and wished that I could share this time together, yet something felt...odd. Like a fly on a beautiful cake, but I pushed it to the back of my mind.

I squinted. It seemed that there was an outline at the lake...was I the only one that could see it? I saw it strengthen to...

"The Fayth!" Rikku shouted.

I leapt to my feet. The Fayth have found a way to save Tidus! I thought. That would make this night the most perfect and beautiful night I have ever lived. But the fayth seemed, sombre and faint. As if...as if they couldn't hold out much longer.

"Hello Yuna, Tidus, Rikku...Paine." The Fayth spoke quietly, but we were all listening intently.

"As you may or may not know, our power is waning. We said we could only sustain such a life form for thirty days. After which, Tidus would disappear forever." The fayth continued.

"No! But why---" Rikku was cut off by a wave of the Fayth's hand.

"Not now. You see, our power has been waning faster than we'd hoped, and the destruction of the fayth statues hasn't helped at all.

We can't survive much longer. This is probably the last time I'll ever see you again. We may still talk to you, but our human spirits that you can see...we are running out of power to create them. We are holding on for you, Yuna. If Tidus hadn't come back, we would have left for the Farplane long ago.

Yet I come to my point; thirty days was too long, I assumed wrong. You are only on day five, correct? Well...we can't hold on longer than a week from today. I'm sorry, Yuna. We've let you down so much."

The Fayth vanished as I ran after it.

"NO!" I screamed, tears flowing down my cheeks like rainwater, "You can't do this to us! After all I did for you! I set you free! I helped you move on! I defeated Sin! What else must I do to keep the one I love alive!" I couldn't help it. My anger was flowing out of me as freely as the tears. "I wish I had never helped you at all! If I knew this would happen! If I knew Tidus was a...dream..."

"Yuna..." Tidus's voice rang through me like a bell, stopping me in my tracks. I turned around to him swiftly, tears rolling down my cheeks in all directions, blowing in the wind.

Rain...it just fell from the heavens, as if someone could hear my pain. Rikku and Paine had gone, simply vanished into the black darkness.

"I love you! Do you not love me too? All this time, I've said it loud and clear. All this time, I've wished, hoped and prayed that we could be together again, that somehow, someway...we could be together forever...I've never visited this place at night since, you know? So it would be special when you finally came back. Yet you have never said 'I love you too', you've never hugged or kissed me since those times. Do you not love me any more? Were all my fantasies just a lie? Are my memories meaningless?"

Silence...


	8. In the rain

The silence seemed to echo forever, echoing within the chasm between us, that seemed to be getting wider every instant.

He came towards me, soft, silent, the darkness surrounding us so I couldn't make out his face. I stood still, I felt as if I was frozen to the spot by some unknown force. He embraced me, he was warm and I felt happy and carefree for a brisk moment, all my troubles seemed to fly away. But then, he let me go, and I was returned to the cruel and icy world with a bump.

"I…can't." He murmured, not even daring to look me in the eyes. "I wish I could love you Yuna, but if I did leaving you would be so much worse than it is now." The words seemed to buzz forever in my head, I had to listen to them again and again to process the information properly. Was the Tidus I had loved so much really saying these words to me? It was difficult to think properly, yet I stumbled across a sentence:

"Why? I knew I was going to die, yet I still loved you with all my heart. It may be hard to part, I know, but still we should make the most of these moments that we have to be together, as they are rapidly disappearing."

He just shook his head, and turned away. "I'm sorry, Yuna. Forgive me." He whispered, barely audible above the pouring rain, as he disappeared into the blackness. I was just left there, alone. I felt so hollow and my emotions were such a wreck they seemed impossible to salvage. Why was Tidus doing this? I just couldn't understand why he couldn't love me, I knew it would hurt to part, but we should make the most of what scarce time we had left, soak it up like they were the last moments in time.

I just squatted there a while, my hair was sticking in wet clumps to my face and my clothes were all cold and sodden. I gazed out over the landscape, wondering how just a few hours ago Tidus, Rikku, Paine and I were sitting, almost in a carefree way, and how it had now deteriorated into this chaos.

I felt a warm had on my shoulder; my head swivelled around to see who it was. It was Rikku, looking sombre and unusually gloomy as she looked down on me. She forced a smile, but I could see it was fake, a smile of pity to the girl who's love had just left her. "It's cold out here", she said, "Come on the ship, we're leaving now." I didn't answer, I didn't even tell my body to do anything, it was just in Autopilot, doing as it was told and walking silently towards the Celsius. My limbs were numb, my heart was shattered and what was left of my happiness had disappeared long ago.

I sat on my bed in the ship, not one person had said a word to me since I had re-entered. I wasn't surprised; Rikku and Paine were probably angry at me for hiding from them, for not telling them Tidus was going to disappear. I just sat there for hours, my eyes glazed over, wondering over what had happened and what was going to happen.

I didn't want to move, but I felt I should; something told me I had to explain to everyone why I hadn't told them. I rose silently, and as I entered everyone just stared at me, their icy glares freezing my heart.

"I'm sorry…I should have told you." I murmured, then, finding a scrap of courage from somewhere deep within my heart, I continued, "It was just…I thought that if I kept it a secret, kept it at the back of my head, I could convince myself that it wasn't really happening, that Tidus was still here to stay." Silence still dominated the area, so I looked up, held my head high; " I have no regrets. I never wanted to hurt you, all I wanted to do was to make Tidus's…last days…be his best ones."

I didn't see what else to say. What more did I need to tell them? I simply stood there in the doorway, watching their expressions change, emotions of anger, sympathy and pity all crossing their faces.

Finally, Rikku broke the silence. "I'm not angry, Yunie." She walked over and she put her hand on my shoulder, "I was just confused. I wanted to know why you didn't tell us." She looked me in the eyes and I knew she was telling the truth, no lies or fake smiles.

"It's not fair," I whispered, tears welling up inside my weary eyes, "Why does he have to leave? After all we did for the fayth, why can't they just let us be together?" My eyes were stinging, but I wasn't going to cry. My pain was beyond tears, my heart was shattered beyond grief.

"Life doesn't work that way, Yunie," Rikku looked at me, her face grave and unusually sombre, "You just have to deal with what you've been given." I looked out of the glass and saw the cloudy sky, and drizzle still falling from the heavens.

"Where's Tidus?" I asked, I thought he was probably somewhere on the airship thinking.

"Tidus? I thought he was with you, I was surprised when you walked in alone." Paine chipped in, finally talking after sitting silently for what seemed like forever.

Nobody spoke, nobody knew where he was at all. "Maybe he's still at the Moonflow?" Rikku said. We manoeuvred slowly through the sky, scanning. I felt sick, my stomach tied itself in knots. Where could he have gone? It was so dark and wet, and he was alone…what if he'd left me for good? The thought of never seeing him again was too familiar and it burned with renewed pain. "There he is!" Brother cried, and I ran to the glass, looking down. Sure enough, there was Tidus, sitting with his hands around his knees.

As the door of the Celsius opened to let him in, I ran down the slope, jumping out onto the soft mud with a thud. I walked slowly to him, possible scenarios buzzing through my head. What if he ran away? What if he ignored me? I couldn't bear it.

"Tidus…please. Listen to me." I looked at him as his head picked up my words and he faced me.

"I said it earlier, but I love you. More than anything. Yes, you have to leave, and I know that. But even if you reject me, you'll still disappear in a week. But if you make the most of your time, then it won't hurt so much leaving, knowing that at least you did what you wanted."

"But…won't it hurt more knowing that I can't be with you forever?" Tidus inquired, his face softening.

"No, because when I was a summoned I thought my time was limited, I thought my time with you wouldn't be long. But I knew that when I would have died, I would have been happy because I did what I wanted to do most in my life- and that was to love you."


End file.
